These Days: Thursday, May 4th, 2017

New Music: And then there was one… the Drums are now Jonny Pierce and while the world considers “Heart Bassel” a return to form, I tend to think they’ve never left form and if anything, they’ve lost a step but not more than that on the perky (relatively, relatively) second single (Grade: B) and catchy in the extreme first single (Grade: B+) off their upcoming Abysmal Thoughts. Meanwhile, I just listened to the first At The Drive-In single in seventeen years, “Hostage Stamps”. It’s been out a month but I missed it, and this thumping monster of a song is possibly the best rock song I’ve heard all year. (Grade: B+). That Brandi Carlile benefit album is pretty excellent (Grade: B+). Getting Dolly Parton and Pearl Jam is a good trick, getting Adele and Pearl Jam is a great trick.

Old Music: I put together my Rhiannon Giddens setlist and it sounds mighty good except why no “Don’t Let It Trouble Your Mind”?

Concerts: G-Dragon, Sir Paul at MSG, Fall Out Boy, Beth Ditto… I’ve been on a tear lately though going for nosebleeds on most of those. Tim and Faith tonight. Michael McDonaldis play Carnegie Hall on October 19th, Harry Styles tix go on sale Friday at ten if you have already verified via email address. An interesting attempt between Harry and TM to get the tix in the hands of fans and out of ticket brokers but really all that will happens will be prices raised on secondary sales websites.

More Concerts: Tim and Faith tomorrow.

Sports: Yanks keeping on pounding that damn ball, Aaron Judge has taken his 13 dingers to the rookie of the month, but if they don’t settle down their pitching. Mets let loose as well.

More Sports: The Rangers need to play as well today as they did on Tuesday and the Senators won’t know what hit em.

Death: The English Beat’s Saxa is dead at 87, Grandaddy bassist Kevin Garcia